Deutsche Welle reverses decision to close Greek service after high-level lobbying

Unanimous vote to maintain broadcasting

The Broadcasting Council of German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle voted unanimously on 18 September 2026 to continue the operations of its Greek-language service. The decision officially cancels a previous resolution from February 2026 that had scheduled the service for permanent closure on 1 January 2027. Formal publication of the council's decision is set for 21 September 2026. The resolution followed direct representations from the Greek government and renewed appeals from the Journalists' Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (ESIEA), which had called on the broadcaster to reconsider the termination.

Budget cuts and the February shutdown plan

The original decision to dismantle the 62-year-old Greek program followed reductions in the German federal grant allocated to Deutsche Welle. Broadcaster leadership had determined that financial constraints required restructuring language departments serving countries with established democratic systems.

The DW Greek service will be abolished. This service provided independent information to the public in Greece, including during the military dictatorship. It was an important channel of dialogue during the euro crisis, conveying German views to the Greek public. Greece has long been a member of the European Union, a stable democracy with a diverse media landscape, which is why DW must make cuts in this area.

Diplomatic lobbying and parliamentary appeals

The reversal resulted from a sustained diplomatic push coordinated by Greek authorities after the February announcement. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis raised the matter directly in talks with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Following this high-level contact, Greek officials initiated regular discussions across party networks connecting New Democracy with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Germany.

Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Tasos Chatzivasileiou and member of parliament Filippos Fortomas traveled to Germany to attend the CDU conference, raising the issue directly with the President of the Bundestag, cabinet ministers, and German lawmakers. In addition, Chatzivasileiou, Fortomas, Cypriot member of parliament Harris Georgiades, and Marian Wendt of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation submitted a joint letter to members of the German federal parliament. The letter requested a formal political reconsideration of the scheduled 1 January 2027 closure and called on German legislators to use parliamentary avenues to reverse the measure. Chatzivasileiou also conducted regular representations through the European People's Party framework.

Broad stakeholder coalition and broadcast history

Greek officials reinforced their campaign by building ties with prominent figures across German political, religious, and business communities. Key participants in the effort included Thomas Rachel, head of the German-Greek parliamentary friendship group in the Bundestag, Marian Wendt, former director of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Athens, Metropolitan Augoustinos of Germany, and Phaedon Kotsambopoulos, president of the German-Hellenic Business Association.

Advocates consistently referenced the past role of the Greek program in German-Greek relations. During the Greek military junta, the service broadcast from Cologne as one of the few independent news sources available to millions of Greek citizens. Its programming provided uncensored news bulletins, political interviews, and commentary, while transmitting songs and cultural works that had been banned by the military regime.